Dash and Splash

I have gotten out of the habit of posting, mostly because I have gotten out of the habit of running.  I had a race, and, as has become custom, I got sick the week before.  I was encouraged, though, because I came down with it a full eight days before race day and began Cold Eeze and increasing fluids.  No luck, I still got sick.  Being over thirty I can't shake colds in three days anymore.  Here I am 12 days later and it is the first day I felt good all day.  So I ran five and a half today.

I ran the race though.  It is my home course.  My parents, and I, live in upstate New York.  We do not live together.  Visiting them frequently I run this course whenever I am down there.  At the turn for the 5k you could see their mailbox.  There are no long hills or arduous climbs, but there are a lot of quick ups and downs that make it a challenging course.  Enough so that it is tough to PR, which I did not do.  I put in a ton of intervals and tempo runs and got to run 2.5 miles in the week leading up.  I am left feeling like I could have done better.  Possibly cracked into a 22:xx for the course.  I have decided that I like feeling like I could not have done any better.  In this case, I could have.  I think.  Check out the results.  It is the 2011 Keuka Lake Dash and Splash.  I am in 36th.

The absolute best part of the race is the bar-b-q at my folks after.  Everyone brings some food and I throw on some chicken speedies.  This year the Utica Club was my treat, and my dad volunteered some Molson Canadians and Genny Light.  Cheap beer is always more fun with friends.  And it was fun.  Thank you to JP, Mary Ann, Deborah Ann, Rick, Ellie, my wife Erica, my parents Russ and Judy.  I won't lie.  The best part was not the party.  The best part was high fiving my daughter, Irene, at the turn.  I could see she didn't think I would do it; but, was elated that I did.  She hi fived Mommy, too.

I will post the Presque Isle post in a few days time.  I actually made contact with someone up in Aroostook Country and am working on a time to talk with him about the running club.  I have made my first few steps west through Presque Isle and am 12 miles out of my next target city where I will turn south again.  I have some good stuff coming.  Including getting into the mountains of Maine.